Violin-bow-haib



H. LANG.

VIOLIN BOW HAIR FASTENER.

APPLICATION FILED AUG.30, 19H.

1 307,557. Patented June 24, 1919.

%J of HANS LAN G, 01? MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN.

VIOLIN-BOW-HAIR FASTENER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 24, 1919.

Application filed August 30,1917. Serial No. 188,895.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HANS LANG, a subject of the Emperor of Austria, (but having deolared his intention to become a citizen of the United States,) and resident of Milwaukee, in the county of Milwaukee and State of WVisconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Violin-Bow-Hair Fasteners; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

My invention refers to new and useful improvements in violin bows, and is more particularly directed to the provision of a fastening means for the bow hair.

In the usual types of violin bows at present on the market the bow hairs are secured in place in such a manner as to require expert workmanship in replacing the same upon their becoming worn, and it is thus necessary for the bows to be sent to a factory or shop for such replacement.

It is therefore one of the objects of the invention to provide a means for securing the bow hairs, which is of such a nature as not to require necessarily skilled labor in the removal and replacement of such bow hairs.

Heretofore it has been considered necessary to construct the frogs of violin bows of wood or similar material, preferably ebony, and as the result from such construction the edges and sides of the frogs frequently-crack and chip off, this being particularly true after the bow hairs have been replaced several times.

Another object is therefore to construct a violin frog of metal which will have all the necessary qualities of the usual wood frog without any of its attendant disadvantages.

With these and other objects in view, the invention resides in the novel combination and arrangement of parts, which will be hereinafter more particularly described and claimed, and shown in the drawing wherein:

Figure 1 represents a vertical longitudinal sectional view through a violin frog of improved construction, said section being indicated by a line 11 of Fig. 2, and

Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse section taken substantially on the plane of the line 22 of Fig. 1.

In the preferred embodiment of the invention, as illustrated in the drawing, the numeral 1 designates the usual hexagonal shank of a violin bow to which bow hairs 2 are secured by a head block or frog 3 and a heel block, the latter not being illustrated since it forms no part of the present invention. The end of the shank adjacent the frog 3 is provided with a longitudinal channel 4 to receive a feed screw 5 and a nut 6 carried thereby, these parts and the head. 7 of the feed screw being adapted to move the frog longitudinally of the shank for tensioning the bow hairs. The nut 6 is provided with a shank 8 which is threaded into the body of the frog, as shown.

This frog is preferably constructed of aluminum or other light metal, and as a result of such construction the usual rapid deterioration thereof is prevented. As heretofore indicated, when frogs are constructed of-wood the edges thereof are prone to chip ofi, particularly the edges 9 of the channel which receives the shank 1. Also the shank 8 of the nut 6 quickly becomes loosened in the frog and is extremely diflicult to retain in operative relation therewith. The engagement of two metallic parts by means of screw threads, as in the present instance, will effectively overcome this difficulty- In providing fastening means for the bow hairs 2 the metallic frog is provided with a recess 10, the same opening through the outer sides thereof as clearly indicated in the several figures of the drawing.

A curved clamping jaw 11 is pivoted at one end between the side walls of the recess 10 and adjacent the inner end of the same, and is adapted to have its free end portion moved toward or away from or lie against one straight wall 12 of said recess. The outer portion of the side of the jaw which engages said wall 12 is straight and ap proximately parallel with the outer portion of the opposite side of the same, and the last mentioned straight side portion of the jaw is slidably engaged by the inner rounded end of the screw 13, which screw is threaded through a longitudinal opening extending from the outer end of the frog into the recess. The position of the screw 13 is such that its inner end will engage the jaw 11 at a point directly opposite the point of contact between the latter and the wall 12 or the bow hairs 2. By having the opposite outer side portions of the jaw parallel and the end of the screw slidably engaged therewith as set forth the bow hair will be very effectively held.

In securing the bow hairs in the frog, the

ends thereof are threaded through a ferrule 14, which, together with a wedgel5, forms a spreader for the hairs. The endsthereof' are then directed into the recess so that they will lie against the wall 12 thereof, in which position they are engaged by the jaw 11. It has been assumed that the screw 13 has been loosened to allow free play of the jaw, but after the hairs are in place this screw is rotated so that it will engage and force the jaw toward the wall 12 and thus clamp the hairs therebetween. It is obvious that with such a fastening means the hairs may be quickly and eifectivelysecured in the frog.

Manipulation of the hairs and the parts used for securing them to the frog is readily possible through the openings in the sides of said frog, and after said hairs are clamped in position these openings are closed by means of slide plates 16 and 17, which are preferably dovetailed, as shown in Fig. 2 and slide in similarly shaped grooves in the faces of the frog. These slide plates thus form closures which are readily removed when it is necessary to replace the bow hairs.

As herein before indicated the major portions of the frogare constructed of metal, but for 7 The combination with bow shank and an end block portion carried thereby and provided with a transverse recess having an 7 angular extension in the outer face portion of the block, of a jaw member disposed in the recess and pivoted to the block'adjacent the inner end of the recess, bow hairs engageable between one side of said; jaw member and the opposing wall of the recess and adapted to lie in the angular extension of said recess, a screw longitudinally threaded in the block member and having one end adapted for abutting engagement with the other side of the jaw member, and a movable cover for the outer face portion of the recess; a In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto set. my hand at Milwaukee, in the county of Milwaukee and State of HANS LANG.

Wisconsin.

Copies of this patent may beobtained for five cents'each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

